Firefly Alley

Firefly Alley seen from afar.

Firefly Alley (ほたる横丁, hotaru yokochou^?) is a location in Sol Ciel, the setting of Ar tonelico: Melody of Elemia. It's basically a floating island located near the Sea of Death, at roughly the same height as the Terraced Fields.

History

This city was built according to Tenba's Concept for a Academic City for the Cloud Sea Investigation, and it's an entirely artificial and floating island that is located around 62 Stons (roughly 200 meters) over the Sea of Death, and it's located below the Wings of Horus, half-way between the Terraced Fields and the Floating Wharf. Its current population is of approximately 97000 people. In recent times, the town areas expanded, and a great number of immigrants came to live here. Now, most of the residents of Firefly Alley are actually immigrants that came from the Airport City Nemo. And it goes without saying that most of them just changed their place of residence from a pleasant continent to a place like this out from simple curiosity. It was because a lot of adventurers and researchers dreamed with going below the Sea of Death, discovering new things, and studying more methods of using the Grathnodes, and like fishes being fished out from the Sea of Death, they exported an enormous variety of manufactured products to Nemo. All the residents of Firefly Alley have grown used to the tremors the island frequently has, so they don't get sick at them, and they aren't afraid of heights anymore.

Events in Melody of Elemia

{coming soon...}

Main Areas

Firefly Alley has the following areas accesible to the players:

The Seagull Port.
Seagull Port: The main airport of the island, used both for arrivals and departures. Has as main destinations the Floating Wharf and Aiport City Nemo.

Karakola Ave.: One of the main avenues of the city. The Card Master has his stall set up in this area, and there is a Dive Shop located here, as well. The stairwell in the center leads to a catwalk that interconnects the city, the main area of the Tenba Labs, the Firefly Power Generator, and the pipeline leading to the Terraced Fields. On the other hand, the road near the Card Master's stall leads to the Main Firefly Avenue.

Main Firefly Ave.: The most centric of the avenues and streets in Firefly Alley. Spica is almost always in this area, selling off Kitty Candies, and for the ones that know her secret password, extremely rare Grathnode Crystals.

Fu-Rai-Bo Inn & Shop: Serves as a general store of sorts, selling some basic equipment, healing items, and low-level Grathnode Crystals. As its name says, it also serves as a inn for the travelers.

Tenba Headquarters: This place is the center of operations of the Tenba Conglomerate. However, the players can only access the Reception Hall, and occasionally, the President's Office.

Background Information

Outline of the Island

This place keeps its balance thanks to 4 support arms, which together look similar to a four-armed Yajirobee*. Each arm has as its core a floating disc made from Grathnode called the Flipper. Basically, the city started being just a layer of houses, and later on, as new families moved in, they built more houses over the old ones, and they continued doing this until the current times. Because of that, the structure of city got excessively complicated, and even the residents often get lost in it.

So, as the standard size for the areas of the city expanded, inside of Firefly Alley there were plans to simplify the navigation through its blocks, but none of them proved to be effective, until a railway similar to a trolley was established.

Furthermore, since this city is basically a property of Tenba, the mayor of Firefly Alley is at the same time the President of Tenba. However, actually each one of the blocks of Firefly Alley have their own governments, which gather and hold a conference called the Firefly Alley Commerce and Industry Meeting. In this meeting, the decisions concerning various matters, such as the maintenance of the city, the laws governing its inhabitants and even the trade rates, are taken here.

* Yajirobee: Japanese balancing toy.

The Central Power Generator

It has a Flipper in its core. This is a floating and rotating disc made from Grathnodes, which was created using the Grathmeld technique. When the Flipper rotates, it gains a great buoyancy. Anything that comes near the radius of a rotating Flipper, no matter how small or big, will float, and because of that, its rotation it's used as the propeller principle for the airships.

Fashion in Firefly Alley

In Firefly Alley, the winds are so strong that inevitably the people need to have short hair, so it won't be an obstacle while they are working. In addition to keeping their hair short, a lot of people also use caps as part of their work gear. In the warm days, they wear a mesh of clothes to keep themselves fresh, while in the cold seasons they also wear mantles and cloaks to protect themselves against the cold winds. The mantles usually don't go beyond the waist in length, because if they were long to reach the feet, it could cause their owners to trip while walking. The materials preferred for clothing are almost always cotton, linen and some others. This also means that synthetic fibers are non-existent.

It has also become common to see people wearing trousers for walking. However, over that, the women prefer to wear skirts, while the men use other garments to cover themselves. As for the women, if they wear long skirts, they wear tights under them, while if they wear mini-skirts, they don't wear the tights. And in order to avoid damaging the clothes, they added deeper and covered pockets to them.

In contrast, they like a lot to use big ribbons and scarves, which dance when the wind blows, as ornaments, in special if they produce any kind of sounds when that happens. And they also like if they are patterned, mostly the ones with stylish straight lines, but they prefer to avoid sultry patterns. The preferred colors are ivory and the hemp-colored basic tones, though the primary colors are almost never used. Since the sunlight is so bright, white tones are avoided for not harming the eyes of other people, and fluorescent clothes are never used.

And because this city is rich on industries and artisans, the people almost always carry hammers and wrenches inside of their pockets.

Cielian Clothes

The clothes of the Cielians are western-styled. Because of the damp climate, they had to pay attention to the ventilation, and so, they wear trousers that stretch around the legs. And for safety reasons, because of how risky the terrain can be when it's damp, the preferred footwear are high shoes and boots. In this city, wearing high-heeled shoes is a risk.

Clusterian Clothes

The clothes that the Clusterians wear have a very similar image to the japanese traditional clothes, furthermore, they are comparable to the kimonos, and they are made in a way that they have a high grade for exposition and breathability. In the back, they tie the obis in a way in which they take the shape of a big pinwheel, and this style of clothing has gotten quite a popularity in recent times among the women.

The Feet of People: "The Tram"

In Firefly Alley, the most popular way of transport is the tram. This special railway travels through various routes, each one having an Station as its core, and there is one for each block of the city.

The Tram Wagons

The wagons aren't anything more than walls and ceilings, although they still have seats.

The Districts of Firefly Alley

The name of all the districts of the island was posted as Firefly in signs all over the blocks that form it. Its main airport is the Seagull Port, and since it's located relatively close to the center of the city, because of its location, it served as an ideal entry point to Firefly Alley, which helped to raise its spontaneous prosperity.

The Problem of the Water

Since the water is essential for living, it is drawn from the Tower, along with many other things, and sent to the island through a pipeline. Because it is so valuable, the enterprises that manage the public baths have to let the clients bathe free once each two days, and is normal to leave the laundry to specialists on the matter. In the city, in a block called the Great Cleaner Cape, there is an enormous washing machine, in which the citizenry throw the clothes to wash them. The washing machine is transported through railways, and both the morning and evening trains have two cars that are exclusively used for this purpose. The people always rushes to the tram to get to the station in time, so they can drop the clothes they need to wash and pick up the already washed ones.

Seagull Port

The port to which the airships arrive and depart from. This was the starting point from which the entirety of the city was established. The airships from Tenba also arrive and take off from here, and therefore, the people always know whenever the adventure-loving president of Tenba, Ayano, returns from one of her trips.

Research Facility for Future Sciences

The highest building in Firefly Alley. It resides on the central part of the highest revolution axis of the island, and it's the institution with the most pretentious name. Entry is strictly forbidden to unauthorized personnel. From the entrance, there is a spiral staircase inside of the axis, which can't be seen from the outside. Currently, they seem to be working in developing a one-seater glider, and researching the buoyancy of the continent.

Residential Areas (Kitty Town)

Before the great expansion of Firefly Alley, this was the most densely populated area in the island. It used to be an area bathed in sunlight, but since nowadays the new outer sectors of the city covers it, it's dark even during daytime. So, to the chagrin of a lot of people, this area turned gradually into an habitat for cats, so it's now popularly known as the Kitty Town. Since they only purr when they are sleeping, it's thought that an extremely intelligent cat called Negoron is the one that rules over them.

Moonlight Town

This is the block where the majority of the researchers reside currently. Since the main airport for Firefly Alley, the Seagull Port, is located in this block, it's the block with the most convenient transport system. Practically all the projects related to Tenba are always planned and designed in this block.

Rocket Plaza

When Firefly Alley was first completed, this place was built as an investigation facility for the young people that couldn't stop dreaming with someday going to the moons. In the current days, it's now used for people that wishes to do long-distance studies on Grathmeld, and Tenba offered this place to them without any charges.

Other Areas of Interest

Horned Owl Time Laboratory

It's located in the same block as the Great Washing Machine. Whatever they might be researching, it's a complete mystery. It's filled which stubborn old geezers that wear white lab robes.

Magic Plaza

This is the last station on the New Firefly Line line of the tram, and it's also the trial area for Grathmeld experiments. It used to be the institution that Tenba set up to research and develop the Grathmeld technology, but it was recently opened to the public, and now everyone can come and go in without any cost.

Plunge Stand

This station was originally the base for building the great Morning Sun bridge, which crosses to the right side of Firefly Alley, and because of that, it has such a disturbing name. This station is completely desert.

Sea Angling Central

This is spot where the people called the Cloud Anglers fish out creatures from the Sea of Death. Since in the past there was a wooden bridge in this place, and it ended collapsing and falling 62 Stons (approx. 200 meters) below into the Sea of Death, the anglers go to try and fish out anything that could be remaining of it.

Starseed City

This is the place inhabited by the people that want to live away from the tumult of the city.

Observatory

This place is connected to the rest of Firefly Alley through the great Morning Sun bridge, and it's used for observing the stars.

Transportation Methods for the Firefly Alley Specialties

Because of the way the city expanded by building new sections upon the old ones, there are special transportation methods for the merchandise and special products. Generally, while the stairs are still used, the transportations of merchandise through vertical routes is done through ropes and gondolas, and Tarzan-style ropes are especially popular among children. Since this city is inhabited by people filled with adventurous spirit, what could be seen as dangerous transportation methods by other people, for them is an extremely enjoyable experience.

Wind Tunnel Chute

There are wind tunnels everywhere in the city, and enormous pieces of cloth are used as parachutes to transport items vertically through these tunnels. Whenever a strong gust of wind blows, the enlargement of the cloth is regulated to control better the elevation. However, this method can be only used for elevating things, not for sending them downward.

Sylpheed

An small glider with a maximum capacity of two passengers. Basically, it gives the feel of being just a glider appended to a bicycle. However, its use is not widespread because of its expensiveness, so this is an item that the majority of the people wish to have.

Windboard

Basically, it's an skateboard used for riding the wind. The board is divided in a section for putting both feet (riding), while two wings at the sides control the altitude. It's mainly used as a equipment for playing inside of the wind tunnels, though in these places it's forbidden to play with the windboards.

Shops

Fu-Rai-Bo Shop & Inn

Level	Item Name	Item Class	Cost	Stars	Rank
N/A	RC: White Powder	Recipe Card	250	N/A	N/A
N/A	RC: Battery ^[1]	Recipe Card	200	N/A	N/A
N/A	RC: Screw ^[2]	Recipe Card	900	N/A	N/A
N/A	RC: Mysterious Liquid ^[3]	Recipe Card	100	N/A	N/A
N/A	RC: Ramcluster ^[4]	Recipe Card	10000	N/A	N/A
N/A	Dokkoi Set	Usable Item	80	N/A	C
N/A	Tranquility ^[5]	Usable Item	188	N/A	Variable
N/A	Handgun	Weapon	240	N/A	C
N/A	Chainsaw	Weapon	400	N/A	C
N/A	Enhanced Fiber Mantle	Armor	240	N/A	C
N/A	Overalls	Armor	400	N/A	C
Blue 1	Withstand Fire	Grathnode Crystal	90	***	B
Blue 1	Withstand Ice	Grathnode Crystal	90	***	B
Blue 1	Withstand Lightning	Grathnode Crystal	90	***	B
Blue 1	Withstand Wind	Grathnode Crystal	90	***	B
Purple 1	Upgrade	Grathnode Crystal	120	**	C
Purple 1	Rock of Healing	Grathnode Crystal	30	**	C
Purple 1	Running Fire	Grathnode Crystal	70	**	C
Purple 1	Running Ice	Grathnode Crystal	70	**	C
Purple 1	Running Lightning	Grathnode Crystal	70	**	C
Purple 1	Running Wind	Grathnode Crystal	70	**	C
Red 1	Kiddy Size Fire ^[6]	Grathnode Crystal	70	**	C
Red 1	Kiddy Size Ice ^[6]	Grathnode Crystal	70	**	C
Red 1	Kiddy Size Lightning ^[6]	Grathnode Crystal	70	**	C
Red 1	Kiddy Size Wind ^[6]	Grathnode Crystal	70	**	C
Red 1	Dmg to MP - Minor ^[6]	Grathnode Crystal	50	**	C
Red 1	Dmg to HP - Minor ^[6]	Grathnode Crystal	50	**	C

Notes:

↑ Become available after returning from the Falcon's Claw to Nemo.
↑ Becomes available upon reaching Silvaplate for the first time.
↑ Becomes available upon creating the Circula Teleporter.
↑ Becomes available after the repairs of Lyner's Airship begin in Phase 2.
↑ Grathmelded Items. Become available upon being synthesized for the first time. Their Rank depends on the rank in which the player crafted them. Additionally, the Power Sourcer becomes available upon being synthesized and having returned from the Falcon's Claw to Nemo.
↑ ^6.0 ^6.1 ^6.2 ^6.3 ^6.4 ^6.5 Become available after Phase 2 begins.

Spica's Shop

Normally

Level	Item Name	Item Class	Cost	Stars	Rank
N/A	Kitty Candy	Usable Item	12	N/A	C

With the Password

Spica's secret shop changes stock after every battle and only handles Grathnode Crystals. The crystals she might have available are only these the player doesn't have in his or her possession. Likewise, she can never stock unique crystals, such as those received as Grade 4 drops from some boss battles.

Karakola Ave. Card Center

Level	Item Name	Item Class	Cost	Stars	Rank
N/A	Firefly Paper	Material	64	N/A	C
N/A	Ar tonelicard 1	Usable Item	100	N/A	C
N/A	Ar tonelicard 2	Usable Item	400	N/A	C
N/A	Ar tonelicard 3	Usable Item	900	N/A	C
N/A	Ar tonelicard 4 ^[1]	Usable Item	2400	N/A	C
N/A	Ar tonelicard 5 ^[2]	Usable Item	3500	N/A	C
N/A	Ar tonelicard 6 ^[3]	Usable Item	5400	N/A	C
N/A	Ar tonelicard Final ^[4]	Usable Item	7000	N/A	C
N/A	Ar tonelicard SP A ^[5]	Usable Item	25000	N/A	C
N/A	Ar tonelicard SP B ^[5]	Usable Item	25000	N/A	C
N/A	Ar tonelicard SP C ^[5]	Usable Item	30000	N/A	C
N/A	Ar tonelicard SP D ^[5]	Usable Item	30000	N/A	C
N/A	Ar tonelicard SP E ^[5]	Usable Item	35000	N/A	C
N/A	Ar tonelicard SP F ^[5]	Usable Item	35000	N/A	C
N/A	Ar tonelicard SP G ^[5]	Usable Item	40000	N/A	C
N/A	Ar tonelicard SP H ^[5]	Usable Item	40000	N/A	C
N/A	Ar tonelicard SP I ^[6]	Usable Item	45000	N/A	C
N/A	Ar tonelicard SP J ^[6]	Usable Item	45000	N/A	C
N/A	Ar tonelicard SP K ^[6]	Usable Item	50000	N/A	C
N/A	Ar tonelicard SP L ^[6]	Usable Item	50000	N/A	C